The duties and powers of the President of the United States

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:46

The United States of America is a presidential republic. Under this form of government, the role of the head of state is very great. It is endowed with great rights and opportunities, although its power, as in any democratic country, is limited by the legislative and judicial bodies. In the article, we will consider what are the powers of the President of the United States, how he is elected, and what requirements candidates for this highest state post must meet. Let's also compare the rights of the Russian and American presidents.

Legal Status of US Presidential Powers

The President of the United States is the head of state and heads the executive branch of the country. The government as such in America does not exist, as well as the post of prime minister. Instead, there is a cabinet of ministers whose membersare appointed by the president immediately after the election and have only an advisory function. In fact, they are only advisers to the head of state: they can express their wishes and opinions on a particular issue, but the final decision still remains with the first person of the country.

Who can run for President of the United States

According to the Constitution, only a US citizen who was born in this country and lived in it for at least 14 years in a row can apply for the presidency. At the time of election, he must also live in the territory of the American state. The constitution defines the lower age bracket for a candidate. She is 35 years old. There is no upper age limit at the legislative level.

The term of office of the President of the United States is 4 years. The same person can hold this post no more than twice, and it does not matter if it is in a row or with a break.

Informal requirements

In addition to the requirements stipulated by the Constitution, which must be met by an applicant for the main position of the country in the United States, unofficial ones can also be distinguished.

The President must be a representative of one of the two leading American parties (Democratic or Republican) and must be pre-elected by its members. A person who does not belong to any political structure has almost no opportunity to take the post of head of state, although this is not prohibited by law and such precedents have happened in the history of America.

The moral character of a potential leader of the country is very important. Thus, having a strong family and several children significantly increases the chances of winning the election race.

It is desirable for the future president to have an attractive appearance, good physical shape, good he alth, be cheerful and energetic. He must impress voters as a strong, confident, and charming person that the American people would be proud of, because the president represents the country on the international stage.

He must not be publicly caught lying. If it turns out that the presidential candidate told a lie, then this will reduce his chances of being elected to almost zero.

Next, consider the powers and procedure for electing the President of the United States.

Rights and Duties of the President of the United States

As already mentioned, the head of the American state has a wide range of rights. The main powers of the President of the United States are specified in the Constitution. However, in reality they are much wider. In addition to legally enshrined, there are also rights that are not indicated in the main document of the country, but are implicitly provided, for example, due to the lack of relevant legislative norms. There are also powers delegated to the chief executive by the legislature.

1. The President (with the consent of Congress) appoints officials to the highest state. posts. These are, as a rule, representatives of the same party to which he himself belongs. In the interval between sessions of Parliament, the president alone can appoint a person to a certain post, which he will hold until the end of the next meeting of Congress. Dismissal procedureis not prescribed by law, therefore the right to deprive a person of his position also belongs to the head of state, but his decision must be justified. The control powers of the President of the United States are manifested in the fact that he can require a written report from an official at any level about his activities.
2. The President is responsible for the security of the country. He is the commander-in-chief of the army: under his command are the ground forces and the navy. In addition, all police officers, if they are called up for military service, also become subordinate to the president. Not having the right to declare war (this is the prerogative of the US Congress), nevertheless, the head of state can send troops to any country for up to three months, and after this time, ask parliament for permission to continue hostilities. Also, it is the president who has the right to introduce a state of emergency in the country, if necessary, as well as cancel it.
3. The President of the United States has extensive powers in the field of foreign policy. He represents the country on the world stage, negotiates with heads of state and concludes international agreements, which, however, must be approved by 2/3 of the Congress. It is also the president who appoints those who will defend US interests in other countries (consuls, ambassadors, etc.) and who will sit in international organizations.
4. Congress, representing the legislative power in the country, is not subordinate to the head of state, but the latter has the right to convene extraordinary meetings of parliament in case of emergency domestic or foreign policysituations. Moreover, the priority of choosing the date and time of such a meeting belongs to the president. The head of the executive branch also has the right to veto any bills passed by Congress. He may not sign them and return them for revision or reject them completely. The President addresses regular messages to Parliament. In them, he voices his political course - the direction in which the country should move.
5. The powers of the President of the United States under the Constitution are also available in the field of the judiciary. He appoints federal judges, although he needs congressional approval to do so. The president also has the right to grant pardons, amnesties, and reprieves against persons who have committed crimes against the state. The only exceptions are cases of impeachment, when charges are brought against either the leader of the country himself, or one of the officials at any level.
6. The budgetary authority of the US President lies in the fact that he provides the Parliament with a draft state. budget for next year.

Election process

There are several stages of this process. First, the person who will apply for the presidency is elected within the political party to which he belongs. It's called the primaries. Since there are 2 main political parties in America (Democratic and Republican), as a rule, there are also 2 presidential candidates. Each of them nominates his representative for the position of vice president, whom he must approvecongress. Applicants for the 1st and 2nd posts of the country go together throughout the entire pre-election process.

Then the fun begins. Candidates travel around the country, communicate with the people, agitate people, attracting famous figures in sports and show business, and also arrange debates among themselves.

In the US, the elections are two-stage and not direct, but indirect, that is, not the citizens of the country directly vote for this or that candidate, but the so-called Electoral College, which is created in all administrative districts. The members of this body are determined by the Legislative Assembly or are chosen by the inhabitants of each state from among the most prominent local public figures. At the same time, the number of electors must correspond to the number of representatives of a particular state in Congress.

The elections themselves are held in the first half of December. They vote separately for President and Vice President. The winner in the election race is the candidate who receives an absolute majority, that is, more than half of the votes of all electors. If this does not happen and no candidate for the presidency receives the required number of votes, then the head of state is elected by Congress.

Take office

The President officially takes office on January 20, one month after his election victory. Such a time period is given to the newly elected head of state so that he has time to decide on the candidates for officials whom he must appoint according to the Constitution.

Onsolemn ceremony - inauguration - the president takes an oath, in which he promises to respect and protect the Constitution of the country, as well as conscientiously fulfill his duties.

Reasons for the early termination of the powers of the American president. Impeachment

The termination of the powers of the President in the United States under the Constitution occurs not only after the natural completion of the 4-year term for which he was elected, but also for other reasons.

1. Physical death (in the history of the USA there were 4 presidents who died of natural causes - these are F. Roosevelt, Taylor, Garrison and Harding, and the same number were killed - Kennedy, Lincoln, Garfield and McKinley).
2. Resignation (involves voluntary resignation from the presidency). So far, only the only president, Nixon, has used this method, but he was forced to make this decision under the threat of impeachment.
3. Removal from office by the Senate through impeachment proceedings. Such attempts have been made against several presidents (Bill Clinton is the most famous and relatively recent example), but none of them has been completed. The main reasons for suspension are serious criminal offenses, bribery and treason. The impeachment process is as follows. The House of Representatives issues an indictment and collects evidence, and then transfers the case to the Senate, which becomes a judicial body and makes the final decision (by voting of its members) on the termination or renewal of the powers of the President of the United States.

President's salary

The size of the salary of the head of state of the United States is clearly established and unchanged throughout the entire presidential term of a particular leader of the country. From 2009 to the present day, it has been $400,000 per year (excluding tax deductions). Moreover, this amount does not include travel expenses and funds for other necessary expenses.

The current American president, Donald Trump, being a big businessman, refused to receive his legal salary.

When the office of president arose (historical reference)

September 17, 1787 in the United States adopted the Constitution, which is valid with minor changes to this day. It fixed the position of the president - the head of the executive branch, and spelled out the terms of his powers. George Washington became the first leader of the country in 1789. Prior to this, the concept of president was used in relation to the chairman of the Continental Congress, which brought together representatives of the American colonies to adopt the Declaration of Independence.

US Vice President

The position of vice president in America is not particularly significant. Despite the fact that formally he is the second person in the state, in reality the powers of the Vice President of the United States are small. This is evidenced by the fact that few people know the name of the person who is in this position now (Michael Pence), and the names of those who held this position earlier were also not popular.

The main function of the Vice President is to replace the first person of the country in the event of various force majeure situations: the death or illness of the president, his inability to perform his duties, his voluntary resignation or as a result of the removal of the president from office by Congress.

The requirements for the vice president are the same as for the president. He must be over 35 years old, be a US citizen and have lived in the country for at least 14 years. However, unlike the leader of the country, the tenure of the vice president is not limited to two four-year terms - it can be longer.

The first and second persons of the country must be nominated from one political party, however, what is essential, to represent its interests in different states. The nomination for vice president is proposed by the presidential candidate, and the electoral college also votes for it.

The inauguration ceremony of the vice president is held with the president at 12 noon on January 20th. Here we can note the following interesting point. The vice president takes the oath first. In this regard, some believe that before the oath is taken by the president himself, his deputy becomes formally the leader of the country. However, this is not the case, since the texts of the first and second persons of the state differ from each other.

What does a vice president do if he does not have to perform presidential functions? He heads the Senate - the upper house of Congress, has a decisive vote, which he enjoys when the votes of senators on anythe issue was divided 50 to 50. Also, the vice president, reporting directly to the head of state, carries out his instructions, as a rule, presiding over him in various organizations.

Interesting facts

There have been 45 presidents in the United States of America, from George Washington to Donald Trump, the country's current leader.

Until recently, the oldest president was Ronald Reagan: at the time of his election he was 69 years old. However, the current head of America - Donald Trump - broke this record by taking the highest public office at the age of 70.

The youngest president is considered by many to be John F. Kennedy, who led the country at the age of 43. But one of his predecessors - Theodore Roosevelt - was even younger (42 years old). However, he came to power not as a result of elections, but after the assassination of McKinley, during which Roosevelt served as vice president.

Also in the history of the United States there were 3 leaders of the state who were descendants of people previously elected to the same position. Thus, the sixth president of America, John C. Adams, was the son of the second president, John Adams. Benjamin Harrison was the grandson of William G. Harrison. And finally, the most famous example of kinship, George W. Bush and George W. Bush, father and son, both ruled America, separated by only one president. In addition, a distant relative - a sixth cousin - was Theodore Roosevelt Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd President of the United States.

Comparison of the powers of the presidents of the Russian Federation and the United States

Russia, like the United States, is a presidential republic. However, according to the Constitution, the head of our state has more rights than the American one.

The following main differences in the powers of the President of the Russian Federation and the President of the United States can be distinguished:

1. The American president heads the system of executive state bodies, while the Russian president does not represent any of the branches of power - rather, he is above them, ensuring their coordination and interaction.
2. In the US, the president is not elected by the people, but by a special board, and its members are already determined by universal suffrage. In Russia, there is a more democratic, direct suffrage: whoever becomes the first person in the country is determined by the citizens themselves from the list of registered candidates participating in the presidential race. Voting is secret, equal and universal. The term of office of the American president is 4 years, and the same person can hold the highest state post only 2 times. In Russia, not so long ago, the period of presidential powers was increased from 4 to 6 years. And, as it is written in the Constitution and has already been put into practice, it is only impossible for one person to be president for more than 2 terms in a row, and if with a break, then it is not forbidden.
3. In Russia there is a government as the supreme body of executive power, and in America there is only a cabinet of ministers with an advisory function, completely controlled by the head of state. However, the powers of the Russian government are limited by the president, who appoints, with the consent of the State Duma, its head, has the right to chairmeetings of the government, and may also dismiss the highest executive body.
4. The powers of the presidents of Russia and the United States also differ in relation to the federal legislature. If the American head of state has the right only to convene one or both houses of Congress, then the Russian president can, in cases provided for by the Constitution, even dissolve the Duma, and it is he who initiates the election of a new Parliament

We identified the basic, in our opinion, differences in the powers of the President of the Russian Federation and the President of the United States. They show the role of the head of state in the political system of the two powers. It can be concluded that in Russia he is a more significant figure than in America. However, the status and powers of the President of the United States are also very high and allow a person in this position to make significant changes in all areas of life in his country.